With all the human traffic clogging up the streets it makes perfect sense to dodge the hullabaloo at ground level and escape up when you want a relaxing drink – doubly so when you have rooftops, a skyline and a harbour as fantastic as Hong Kong.

While there are plenty of options for sky-high dining with amazing views in our city, not to mention some great hidden terrace dining spots as well, there are just as many bars offering views that’ll have your eyes popping like a Tom and Jerry cartoon. Whether you’re planning a date night to sweep your beloved off of their feet or just looking for somewhere in the clouds to get away from it all, here’s our guide to Hong Kong’s best rooftop bars.

Hong Kong’s best rooftop bars

Serving Australian and USDA beef, Wooloomooloo cooks up a mean steak. However, let’s be honest, there are better steaks in town at places like Morton’s and Beefbar. What keeps patrons coming back to Wooloomooloo’s Wan Chai branch are the jaw-dropping views from the 31st floor which take in all of the local neighbourhood, the harbour and Happy Valley, including the race course. While you're up there, rifle through the impressive wine list: the choice is vast and worldly.

This new rooftop venue is by the same team behind modern French restaurant Ecriture on the floor below, as well as winning concepts such as Bibo, The Ocean and Tri. One of the coolest alfresco spaces in town, Piqniq is decked out with comfy seats, beanbags and even one of Yayoi Kasuma’s iconic polka-dot pumpkins. In this fun and whimsical space, you can enjoy a variety of 'piqniq' baskets filled with international fare, as well as various wines, champagnes and classic cocktails.

Accessible by a private elevator, Popinjays is a stunning new restaurant and bar that makes it worth trudging up Cotton Tree Drive to reach The Murray. The space is a stunner, encased in floor-to-ceiling windows with a wraparound terrace that looks out in all directions to surrounding high-rises like the HSBC Building and Bank of China Tower. Most standard cocktails are priced at $130, which, while not cheap, is surprisingly reasonable for a five-star hotel.

Perched high above the hustle and bustle of Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, Eyebar is a strong contender for ‘bar with the best vantage point in Hong Kong’. Sit back on the relaxing terrace and take in unobstructed views of Victoria Harbour with a cold beer or signature cocktail.

If you think Hong Kong’s best rooftop bars are restricted to locations near the harbour, think again. The Garage Bar in Mong Kok, at the Cordis, boasts an impressive range of local and international craft beer and is also a good bet if you want a bite to eat. There’s an attractive red and black theme that runs throughout the fourth-floor rooftop bar, which extends to two vintage Citroen food trucks supplying a mix of western and Chinese favourites.

The rooftop terrace at Armani/Privé is a great spot to relax whenever the temperature allows. Don’t be surprised if the bar area is sparsely populated when you enter only for the terrace upstairs to be heaving. Although one of the ‘lower’ rooftop bars on this list, the establishment’s position amid the bright lights of Central is still a winner. Sky high views are traded for plush, comfortable seating and a live DJ spinning chilled-out tunes.

A newcomer to Kwun Tong, Nexus is a seriously spacious location. The unpretentious and studenty bar is a whopping 15,000 sq ft and features darts machines, karaoke, beer pong, billiards, VIP party rooms, TV screens showing sport and a massive rooftop area too. It may not have killer views of the harbour but if you’re looking for a rooftop bar where you don’t have to be squashed up to the table next to you, you can’t do better than Nexus.

A narrow black leathered elevator (which vaguely hints at a padded cell) shoots you up to the 118th floor of the ICC and to the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong where you’ll find the highest bar in the world. You’re immediately greeted by low-lit moody green neon, avante-garde seating and walls of refracted swirling glass, but what seals the deal is the completely unobstructed view of western Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. And, with one of the best wine lists in town and a great cocktail programme, the menu is almost as impressive as the view.

One of the most highly anticipated openings in Lan Kwai Fong when it arrived on the scene, this restaurant, lounge and club takes up the top two floors of LKF’s California Tower. The rooftop bar features a pretty impressive view over Central and Mid-Levels that leaves you feeling like you’re still in the city rather than above it. The interiors, meanwhile, are so sleek it seems like dust would spontaneously combust as soon as it touches the walls, with shimmering dark panelling and red lighting matching the pulsating house mix that reverberates throughout the whole establishment.